12.A Text: Books to Watch For

2024-08-29T22:19:07+03:00

Please note that the underlined parts in this text are related to questions in task 16.

American Dirt by Jeanine Cummins

Lydia, a bookstore owner, had a pleasant life in Acapulco before the arrival of a violent cartel called Los Jardineros. After her husband publishes an exposé about the group’s leader in the local newspaper, her family is massacred, and Lydia and her young son must go on the run. This novel is a heart-stopping story of survival, danger and love, as they undertake the 16.1 grueling journey to the United States.

Black Wave by Kim Ghattas

Going back to 1979—the height of the Iranian Revolution that brought down the monarchy and ushered in an Islamist government—Ghattas shows how Saudi Arabia and Iran’s fractured relationship has had profound consequences for the entire region. Ghattas focuses on people whose lives were 16.2 upended by the rivalry between Iran and Saudi Arabia, including the journalist Jamal Khashoggi, who was killed in 2018.

Cleanness by Garth Greenwell

In this follow-up to his debut novel, “What Belongs to You,” Greenwell returns to his unnamed narrator, an American teaching in Bulgaria, who is now preparing to leave. Desire, longing and taboo all 16.3 converge here, as the teacher reflects on the encounters and relationships that shaped him.

Hitting a Straight Lick With a Crooked Stick by Zora Neale Hurston

A new collection of short stories by the author of “Their Eyes Were Watching God” includes eight selections that were recently discovered in archives and periodicals. The stories here deal with race, class, migration and love, and are 16.4 an invaluable window into African-American experiences during the Harlem Renaissance.

Long Bright River by Liz Moore

In Moore’s suspenseful new novel, two sisters in Philadelphia are driven apart by the opioid crisis. Kacey is an addict, living on the streets, while Mickey, a police officer, does her best to 16.5 keep tabs on her sister. Kacey vanishes, coinciding with a string of killings, and Mickey races to discover what happened to her sister.

Tightrope: Americans Reaching for Hope by Nicholas Kristof & Sheryl WuDunn

Kristof, a New York Times columnist, and WuDunn, a former reporter at the paper, assess the inequality that’s endemic to the working poor, telling stories from across the country. The heart of the book is set in Kristof’s hometown—Yamhill, Ore. where nearly a quarter of his classmates have died from overdoses, accidents or suicide. The authors are careful to show not just misery but moments of optimism and 16.6 resilience, too.

Uncanny Valley by Anna Wiener

When Wiener took her first job at a start-up, she was (like many liberal arts majors at the time) 16.7 ambivalent about tech: intrigued by its promises but aware of the specter of dread surrounding it. “Uncanny Valley” recounts her years working in San Francisco as the tech industry was radically reshaping the country. Her insightful, darkly funny memoir may confirm many of your worst fears about big tech and the people driving it.

Source: Joumana Khatib. https://www.nytimes.com/2019/12/23/books/january-2020-books.html?te=1&nl=books&emc=edit_bk_20191231?campaign_id=69&instance_id=14874&segment_id=19961&user_id=5b662978e2a7e064f99b719b0273dd82&regi_id=9545759520191231. Accessed: 2.1.2020. Adaptation: YTL.

Source: https://eu.usatoday.com/story/entertainment/books/2020/01/21/american-dirt-jeanine-cummins-book-review-mexican-migrant/4497859002/. Accessed: 29.1.2020.

Source: https://www.amazon.co.uk/Black-Wave-Arabia-Rivalry-Unravelled/dp/1472271092. Accessed: 29.1.2020.

Source: https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/45892271-cleanness. Accessed: 29.1.2020.

Source: https://www.phillytrib.com/books-zora-neale-hurston---hitting-a-straight-lick/image_a274208f-3a10-53c7-9f0a-8ebedc77f086.html. Accessed: 29.1.2020.

Source: https://www.bostonherald.com/2020/01/09/long-bright-river. Accessed: 29.1.2020.

Source: https://www.amazon.com/Tightrope-Americans-Reaching-Nicholas-Kristof/dp/0525655085. Accessed: 29.1.2020.

Source: https://www.amazon.com/Uncanny-Valley-Memoir-Anna-Wiener/dp/0374278016. Accessed: 29.1.2020.

12 Books to Watch For (k2021)

12.A Text: Books to Watch For

Please note that the underlined parts in this text are related to questions in task 16.